Strategies for Internet Technology and Digital Rights Reporting https://zimbabwe.misa.org Introduction This research paper proffers strategies for promoting specialised journalism on internet, technology and digital rights in Southern Africa. The advent of digital technology and the widespread use of the internet, has radically transformed societies providing citizens with new avenues to exercise their constitutionally-guaranteed rights and freedoms. Significant gaps in digital rights literacy have been a hindrance to citizens’ ability to recognise, claim and defend their digital rights (which are an extension of human rights that allow for use and access to the internet1). Despite the digital rights literacy gaps, few journalists and media practitioners in the region have adequately or consistently provided information on, raised awareness about or explained/interpreted internet, technology and digital rights issues for citizens. One main reason for this is that reporting on technical fields such as internet and technology requires specialised2 skills and competencies found beyond the traditional toolkits of journalists. In Africa, fields such as science and health communication, data journalism and climate change, have spawned various specialised journalism projects which develop the capacity and skills of journalists to cover technical themes. Although vital lessons can be drawn from existing specialised journalism projects, it is important to note that media reporting on internet, technology and digital rights in Southern Africa is 3contingent on the contextual environment (e.g., the national media system, the role-models of journalists, the strength and diversity of national news media). In most Southern Africa contexts, obstacles in the form of authoritarian systems, restrictive laws, financial problems and corruption, lack of journalism 1See Digital Rights Literacy in Southern Africa, https://zimbabwe.misa.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/13/2020/06/Digital- rightsliteracy-in-Southern-Africa-2020.pdf [accessed 03 October 2020] 2Noted by Cheruiyot, D., Baack, S., & Ferrer-Conill, R. (2019). Data journalism beyond legacy media: The case of African and European civic technology organizations. Digital Journalism, 7(9), 1215-1229. 3ibid 2